Lynn Haven's city manager faces calls for termination as commissioners investigate claims made in lawsuit
City commissioners are expected to decide on Friday whether to fire City Manager Vickie Gainer over allegations that she rigged contract bid requirements to exclude a local company.
Lynn Haven City Manager Vickie Gainer is at risk of losing her job over allegations that she purposefully blocked a local company from doing business with the city.
“It’s time for it to be straightened out,” said James Finch, who owns the company that Gainer allegedly took steps to disqualify from competing for two construction projects, during a special City Commission meeting held earlier this week.
The meeting was called to discuss possible disciplinary action against Gainer after a deposition accusing her of saying she wanted to exclude Finch’s company Phoenix Construction from taking on a road project in 2021 and a paved trail project in 2022 was shared online.
“If anything in that deposition is true, she should be kicked out of the building,” Finch added before leaving the podium.
Instead, the City Commission voted (4-1) to put Gainer on paid administrative leave until an investigation is completed and final action is taken. A decision about her future with the city is expected to take place at another special meeting on Friday at noon central time.
Lynn Haven, which is home to about 21,000 residents, sits adjacent to Panama City and has undergone a major transformation since Hurricane Michael devastated the area nearly seven years ago. Gainer, who accepted the city manager position in November 2019, oversaw the reconstruction of city buildings and infrastructure and was in charge during an active FBI investigation into the city’s handling of federal recovery funds.
Today, her actions are at the center of a lawsuit against the city.
In 2023, Finch filed a complaint seeking more than $50,000 in damages over allegations that the city intentionally shut him out of the bidding process by changing the requirements that companies must meet to win a contract.
“She wanted us to add language to the bid documents that would exclude Phoenix…”
The city’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit is still pending.
At the time that Gainer allegedly excluded Finch, he had recently been arrested as part of a federal probe into local corruption involving hurricane recovery dollars.
Finch was ultimately found not guilty.
Despite his legal troubles at the time, he argues that the unfavorable treatment against him was in response to his criticism of Gainer and calls for her firing.
A city contractor claims Gainer wanted to ‘exclude’ Phoenix
The lawsuit has gone on for the last two years, but public outcry about the allegations against Gainer has recently erupted.
About a week ago, a deposition made by Chris Forehand, a design contractor for the city, was shared on a private Facebook group for residents. His testimony contained allegations that Gainer directed him to change the contract bid requirements on a roadway construction project in 2021 in an effort to prevent Phoenix from qualifying.
“She wanted us to add language to the bid documents that would exclude Phoenix from being able to be the prime [contractor],” said Forehand, who was tasked with drafting the documents as part of his work for the city.
Forehand, whose company has done business with several local governments in the area, said that the new requirements added by Gainer weren’t normal.
First, she directed him to increase the amount of work that a contractor must do with their own equipment and labor from 50% to 75%.
Local governments typically require contractors to complete at least half of the work using their own labor and equipment, and that was always the case for prior contracts with Lynn Haven, Forehand said.
Finch’s company was able to meet the 75% labor and equipment requirement and still offer the lowest bid.
But Phoenix wasn’t awarded the contract after Gainer allegedly intervened at a City Commission meeting and said that the offers were all over-budget and needed to be “re-bid.”
Starting the process over, Gainer allegedly directed Forehand to add a new requirement: Any company competing for the contract must complete all paving work with its own equipment and labor, instead of hiring a subcontractor.
Forehand testified that Gainer told him and at least two other city employees who were in the same room that this new requirement was meant to exclude Finch’s company.
And it worked. Finch was unable to compete for the project.
Instead, it was awarded to another company that bid an even higher amount than what Phoenix originally quoted.
Another project, known as “Rails to Trails,” was also unavailable to Phoenix because of the pavement equipment requirement, Forehand said. “It was implied to leave that requirement in the bid documents.”
City commissioners weigh Gainer’s removal over allegations
At the recent special meeting, City Commissioner Jamie Warrick (Seat 3) initially sought to fire Gainer immediately, but later withdrew his motion and proposed placing her on paid administrative leave until commissioners complete their investigation.
But the investigation’s outcome might not make much of a difference to him.
Even if they find no wrongdoing, Warrick said, he supports firing Gainer. “I don't think she's the best person for the position,” he said. “I’ve found things where policy and procedures were not followed.”
City Commissioner Judy Tinder (Seat 4) said she’s gotten an “overwhelming response” from her constituents in support of taking some kind of action against Gainer. “Like Commissioner Warrick said, it’s not just this incident.”
The city’s lead defense attorney Chad Dunn, who works for the Pennington Law Firm in Tallahassee, cautioned city commissioners that firing Gainer while the lawsuit is ongoing could jeopardize the case.
“My advice is to let the legal process play out a little bit more,” Dunn said. “It may impact the strategy of the case because it seems you believe those allegations.”
City attorney Amy Myers agreed that commissioners should wait until all testimony is gathered before making a decision. “There were several people in the room. This is not a straight ‘he said, she said,’” Myers explained. “There’s several other stories and testimonies yet to be given to paint a more complete picture.”
City Commissioner Sam Peebles (Seat 1) said he didn’t want to make a “premature decision” to fire Gainer based on allegations alone when there’s more evidence they haven’t reviewed.
“If we do gather information and it proves to tell the whole story and it’s a fireable offense, then sure,” Peebles said. “We’re not truly at that point yet.”
Mayor Jesse Nelson, who’s facing calls to step down in part due to his loyalty to Gainer, was the lone dissenting vote on whether to suspend her with pay until the issue is resolved.
Nelson said staff should try to find any written evidence that could verify the claims against Gainer.
“Right now, we're just looking at a deposition,” he said. “But I don't know if there's any documentation to support or deny what has actually been said.”
Before reconvening on Friday, commissioners are expected to have interviewed at least two city employees who Forehand said were in the room when Gainer allegedly directed him to exclude Phoenix. They include: Bobby Baker, the chief infrastructure director, and Chris Lightfoot, the city’s director of public works.
Gainer says allegations are ‘blatant lies’
Several residents spoke during the public comment period, and most of them called for disciplinary action to be taken against Gainer, while a few defended her record.
When it was Gainer’s turn to speak, she described the allegations contained in the deposition as “blatant lies.”
She also defended her accomplishments since taking office, including increasing revenues, lowering the city’s debt and overseeing a major transformation since Hurricane Michael made landfall in October 2018.
“The city has been rebuilt,” she said. “It was totally destroyed.”
If she keeps her job, she vows to continue showing up to work everyday for the residents, despite the negative backlash she’s received from the community.
“I am very distraught, and my family is distraught,” she said. “They’ve had to endure all of these things. I still love the city, and I will work hard for this city.”